


A Strangeness of the Woods

by Merinia



Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-06
Updated: 2015-04-07
Packaged: 2018-03-16 15:53:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3494120
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Merinia/pseuds/Merinia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bard thought himself lucky for getting such a deal on a beautiful house hidden away in the wilderness just outside town. The townspeople are superstitious of a ghost that supposedly resides there, but Bard and his children pay no mind to the stories. That is until they start seeing a white stag with silver antlers and strange things start happening.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Words of Warning

“So, what do you think of the house?” The homeowner’s wife was nervous. She rung her hands and looked o her husband for support as he guided the potential buyer through the rooms.

“It’s almost a mansion, five bedrooms, three bathrooms, living room, dining room and den,” the man chuckled stiffly. “We didn’t realize how much work it would be with just the two of us. It’s in great shape, just too much space.” The man chuckled again.

Bard looked around the spacious kitchen the tour had stopped in. He knew his oldest daughter would love it. All the appliances were new and there was a lot of cabinet space. All the rooms had been wonderful. But the price the house had been listed for…

“It seems like you are selling this place for practically nothing. I know it’s well outside of town in an area with low property tax, but I can’t imagine anyone selling a home this beautiful for so little. Especially one surrounded by woods.” If it hadn’t been listed so low he wouldn’t have even been looking at it. He almost didn’t anyway. He couldn’t even afford a tiny house, so this one being in his price range was unbelievable.

“Ah, well, you see,” the homeowner stuttered.

“We just want it out of our hands so that we can get a little condo on the beach,” the wife answered quickly.

This seemed very suspicious to Bard. There had to be something wrong with the house. Maybe there was a plumbing issue or the electric was spotty. There were downsides to building in the wilderness. Bard thought himself resourceful and was pretty good at fixing things. He could handle any problems like that.

“I’d like to make an offer if you have the paperwork?”

Looks of relieve washed over both of the homeowners’ faces. Bard couldn’t help the little voice in the back of his mind muttering suspicion, but he ignored it. This was a great opportunity for him and his children.

\---

“Da, can we stop? I have to go!”

Bard looked at his youngest in the rearview mirror where she and Bain had been crammed in the small back seats of the truck’s extended cab. The way she bounced in place made it very clear what she meant.

“There a gas station just outside the edge of the woods. We’ll stop there for a pit stop.”

“Can I get a candy bar?”

“You had already had cookies on the drive here, Bain.”

“But-!”

“I said no.”

The boy slumped down in his seat and sulked. Tilda was still bouncing in her seat. Bard pulled the truck into the gas station lot, next to a pump. All three kids jumped out and headed inside as he messed with the pump.

“So you’re the poor sap who bought the house in the middle of the forest, huh?”

Bard eyed the middle-aged woman who had asked the question. “Hello, ma’am. Yes, I am.” He frowned. “I think I’m quite lucky.”

The woman looked over him pityingly. “You do know that the forest is haunted, right?”

“Haunted?” Bard snorted disbelievingly. “The woods can be wild and strange, but that doesn’t mean there are ghosts. Besides, I don’t believe in them.” He put the nozzle back in its place as he saw Sigrid leading her siblings back to the truck.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” the woman barked. “I’m sure the last owners did give you a deal on the place. The ghost scared them off.” She cackled and headed back into the station.

“You didn’t say there were going to be ghosts!”  
Bard picked up his little child and placed her in the truck. “There are no ghosts, darlin’. People are just scared of the wild woods.”

“Why do you think people came up with all those fairy tales about them?” Sigrid asked rhetorically as she climbed back into the truck.

“Are there fairies in the woods?” The little girl wiggled in her seat. “Maybe that’s why people think there’s a ghost!”

“There’s no such thing as fairies,” Bain groused. “Adults just came up with them to make kids listen to them.”

Bard sighed and turned the key. “Guys, we have a lot of work to do when we get to the house. The moving truck will be there and we need to start unpacking.” All three groaned.

\---

“We’re here,” Bard as he shut off the truck.

The children stared at the house in awe before excitedly climbing out of the truck and running toward it. Their father calmly followed, grinning happily.

It was a lovely two story brick house that had probably been there for at least a century. There was a fenced in area that was intended as a kitchen garden and other planned patches of soil just waiting to be planted. The vines climbing on the front side gave the building a romantic feel combined with trees as far as the eye could see. The closest neighbor was a few miles up the dirt road.

Sigrid found the kitchen first. “This is amazing! I can cook anything in here!” She opened every cabinet, finding the spaces spotless and large. She was clearly making a mental list of where to put all her tools and plates, organizing it all in her mind.

Bain had run up the stairs and after a few minutes exploring found an interesting opening in the ceiling. He opened it and climbed the ladder that folded out. He expected to find an attic, but found instead a narrow hallway that lead to a window the size of a door. After some effort, the boy opened it and easily stepped out onto a flat expanse of the roof. It was in the back of the building which was why no one had noticed it.

Bard walked around the outside of the house when he heard his son call for him. He was surprised to find Bain on the roof. After giving a shout of caution, he then went in search of his smallest child.

Tilda had looked through the upstairs bedrooms and picked one for herself. It was bigger than the tiny living room in their old apartment and had a closet with a double door. However, that was not why she had picked this room.

“What are you looking at, sweetheart?” Bard asked when he found his daughter staring out one of the large windows.

“The forest, Da!” She skipped over and dragged him back to the window. “It’s so beautiful from here!”

The view was breathtaking, Bard had to admit. This side of the house was closer to the clearing’s edge, giving a closer view of the towering ancient trees. The nearly bare tree branches were waving gently in the breeze against the late Autumn sky. Come spring, this would be the best view besides on the ledge Bain had discovered.

“You want this to be your room?”

“Can I have it?” The little girl looked up eagerly at her father. How could he say no to that face?

“Of course. Maybe if you’re lucky you’ll see little animals from here when the weather warms up.” Bard chuckled as his daughter bounced on her feet excitedly at the idea. “Now let’s start moving your stuff in here, hm?”

As Tilda ran back down the stairs to get her things, he took one last look out the window. There was something very light colored, almost white just inside the trees edge that Bard could have sworn wasn’t there before. He blinked and it was gone.

“Must have been an animal,” he shrugged and followed his daughter downstairs.

\---

Between the four of them they managed to get everything unpacked and put away before the weekend was over. Of course, they didn’t have a great deal to begin with. Even with everything unpacked, the house seemed rather barren.

“We’re going to need more furniture, Da,” Sigrid sighed over her slice of pizza.

“We’ll make a trip to the thrift store this weekend and see what we can find.”

“Why can’t we go tomorrow?” Tilda asked.

“I have to register you in your new school and I have to get to work at my new job.” Bard sighed overdramatically. “We’ll just have to sleep together on the floor in the living room.”

Tilda giggled. “Da, we have beds.”

Bard blew a raspberry at her playfully, sending her into another fit of giggles.

Bain changed the subject. “What do you think the kids are like here?”

Before anyone could respond, the wind outside picked up and there was a loud thump. Bard got up from the small dining table to check outside. The wind was strong, which seemed strange as the weather had been very calm all day. It made the trees rattle in a way that made a sound like angry hissing. He quickly found the problem; the gate to the kitchen garden had been blown open and banged against the fence, so he tied it shut.

As he headed back inside, Bard felt like there were eyes watching him. When he turned back toward the forest, there was nothing there. He scolded himself mentally for his paranoia and tightly shut the door.

\---

“Class, this is your new classmate. Her name is Tilda Bowman.”

“Hello, Tilda!”

Moving into a new school could be tough, but Tilda was lucky that it was early in the school year and had an easier transition. She had a bubbly personality that drew others to her and she made friends quickly.

“Come sit with us, Tilda,” called a girl in her class, Freda, surrounded by some other kids in the school. She scooted over to make room for her and her lunch.

“Thank you,” Tilda said politely. Her father always told her it was important to be polite to people you’ve just met.

“Are you really from Dale?” asked the boy on Freda’s right. Given the similarities between the two, he was probably her brother. “Is there really buildings that are taller than the trees in the old Greenwood?”

Tilda giggled. “Yep! Da even took me in one once. To the top floor! I haven’t climbed of the trees ‘cause Da says I might fall, but they can’t be quite so tall.”

“You’ve been that close to the woods?” Freda screwed up her face. “My mom won’t even let us within spitting distance, will they Éothain?” At his nod she continued. “She says the ghost in there is dangerous!”

“Da says there’s no such things as ghosts. I think there might be fairies in there, though!” Tilda jumped a little in excitement. “I think I saw a light last night between the trees!”

The siblings looked at each other before Éothain spoke. “You didn’t move into the house in the forest, did you?”

“So?” Tilda didn’t see what the big deal was, even if there was a ghost there.

“It’s dangerous!” One of the other kids at the table blurted out. “The people you got it from were being attacked by deer!”

“Attacked by deer?” Tilda could help but laugh. “I can’t see that.”

“It’s true,” Éothain said firmly. “They had a nice shiny new car that looked like it had been wrecked because of all the dents.”

“It sounds like they weren’t being careful. Da says deer get hit all the time by cars and come out better than the car all the time.”

“What about the people before them? They had a bear camping in their yard!”

“They didn’t put their garbage away properly,” Tilda replied, unconvinced. She had grown up with a father who liked the outdoors and camping, so she had an idea why animals did what they did.

“When Mom was little,” Freda started, “There was a family that moved there and they left garbage everywhere and shot any animal that got close for fun. She says the forest ghost got so mad it killed them all.”

“No way!” Tilda stuck her tongue out. “The woods are dangerous. They probably had an accident.”

“All of them?”

“Well, they didn’t sound too smart.”

“I don’t know…”

Another kid piped up. “What about all the accidents that have been happening there before that house was there?”

“What?”

“Yeah, when part of the forest was made into the town all those years ago, there were a lot of weird things that happened. My grandfather told me that his grandfather told him tools would get messed up for no reason and a bunch of workers had to leave because of illness that got the whole camp and killed a bunch of them.”

“Those are just stories!” The bell rang and everyone scrambled to clean up the table. “Don’t be silly, it’s just a forest.”

\---

When Bard picked her up from school, Tilda was pouting something fierce.

“Everyone talking bad about the woods to you too, huh?” Bard asked lightly. Judging by her grimace, he was right. “Don’t let their silly superstitions get to you, sweetheart.”

“But Da, what if the fairy really doesn’t like people in her forest?”

“Tilda, there’s no ghosts or fairies,” he sighed. “And even if there was, how would you know if it’s a girl?”

“Why don’t we meet them and ask if they’re a boy or a girl.” Tilda’s mood changed to excitement. “We can invite them to tea and make friends! I think that’s what the problem is. No one has been very good neighbors!”

“Now Tilda,” Bard chuckled, “I told you there is no fairy in the woods.”

“Oh, Da.”

He came up to a small diner, the only one in the small town. “Why don’t we wait here and get a bite while we wait for Sigrid and Bain to get out?”

Tilda climbed out of the truck and followed her father into the restaurant. The inside was looked much like the outside. It was out of date and could use a little maintenance. The linoleum was peeling in some places and made sticky noises when walked on while the walls were a garish pink. The place was clean, though, and the smells from the kitchen were wonderful.

They took a small booth by the window which showed the businesses of the town and Greenwood in the far distance.

“It’s not often we get new faces in here. Welcome to Esgaroth!” The red haired waitress gave them a friendly smile.

“Thanks. We just moved here, actually.”

“Really? Got sick of the city, huh?”

Bard laughed. She hit the nail on the head. “Yeah. I’ve always been more of the outdoorsy type and couldn’t resist moving into the woods.” He braced himself for her reaction. His coworkers at the firehouse had not had anything nice to say about the forest.

“If you love nature and are careful with it you should be fine,” she assured. “I’m glad someone is taking good care of that beautiful old house! I’d hate to see it fall apart because no one wants to live out there.”

“You’re the only one who’s been happy for me.”

“I’m not going to say everyone else is wrong, but they’re not completely right either. They’re just scared of what they don’t understand.” She offered her hand.

“I’m sorry, I haven’t introduced myself. I’m Tauriel.”

Bard shook her hand. “I’m Bard, and this is my youngest daughter Tilda.”

“It’s nice to meet you.” She turned to the girl. “And you too, Tilda! Can I get you two anything to drink?”

They ordered their drinks and looked over the menu while she was gone.

“Do you believe in fairies, Miss Tauriel?” Tilda asked shyly when she returned.

“Of course they’re real!” The waitress laughed. She ignored the way Bard rolled his eyes. “You wouldn’t want to meet any, though. They’re nasty things.”

The little girl’s face crumpled.

“I think this might be the best place for you to wait for me when I can’t pick you up right away,” Bard said after Tauriel had taken their orders. “It’s close to school and I don’t feel comfortable letting you ride your bike all the way home yet. I think it’s safe enough here.”

“But you said Sigrid and Bain can ride their bikes home after today!”

“They’re older and can ride longer. I don’t want you to get tired or get lost, sweetheart.”

Tilda wanted to sulk, but decided against it. She didn’t want her father to decide she wasn’t old enough to be left on her own. At least at the diner she could get a milkshake. Also, Tauriel was nice enough to talk to and it wasn’t so busy that she couldn’t. She could probably even get homework done so she wouldn’t have to waste time at home doing it.

“Okay, Da.”

“Good.” Bard smiled. “Now what do you think of your new school?”

\---

Once home, Bain opted to explore the woods for a bit.

“Only for a couple of hours,” Bard told him. “Then you need to do your homework. Don’t go too far or you’ll get lost, and be careful not to trip over anything or run into any dangerous animals.”

“I know, Da!” Really, his father worried too much.

Bain thought about climbing a tree, but after a few minutes of looking around, he couldn’t find any that were good for that. The branches were way too far up to reach and he didn’t trust the vines that grew on some of them to hold his weight that high up. Most of the trees were so tall that the lowest branch would hang out of reach even if someone had stood on the topmost part of the roof of their house.

I wonder how old this forest is, Bain thought to himself. It must be ancient given how old the trees must be to get so tall.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw something move. He turned to face it quickly.

He didn’t want to get caught off guard by a potentially dangerous animal. Even something as peaceful as a deer or small as a raccoon could be threatening.

There was nothing there.

Bain cautiously inched over to the spot he thought he saw the movement, but nothing seemed disturbed. The fallen leaves looked untouched and there were no broken twigs. There is no way something could have moved through here without at least making noise.

The stories his classmates told of a vengeful ghost came to mind, but he scoffed at them. Even if ghosts did exist, Bain didn’t believe they would be able to actually hurt anyone living.

It was probably a leaf falling, he reasoned with himself, and headed back in the direction of the house. No matter what it was, he suddenly didn’t feel welcome among the trees.


	2. White and Silver

“So how’s the new house coming along?”

“It’s good.” Tilda looked up from her homework and smiled at Tauriel. “We got lots more furniture now so the house doesn’t look so empty.”

“Well that’s good.” The waitress took a seat across from her. “You all have enough warm clothes and blankets? Winter’s coming and that old house isn’t built for a good central heating and cooling system.”

“Yeah. Da said it would be a waste of electricity to try. That’s why it was built with fireplaces and lots of windows?”

“Hmhm,” Tauriel agreed. “It was originally built way back before people had the luxury of air conditioning.” She leaned across the table and grinned. “Can you imagine living in a house with your grandparents, all your aunts and uncles and cousins?”

“No!” Tilda made a face at the idea of so many people crowded together.

“Yep! Why do you think that house is so big? It housed an entire clan!”

She gasped. “There’s only five bedrooms!”

The woman leaned back and shook her head. “The smaller rooms probably got converted to bathrooms later. That house didn’t always have plumbing, y’know.”

“Then where did they go?” Tilda asked, flabbergasted.

“There was an outhouse. It’s a tiny building holding a hole in the ground with a bench to sit on.”

The girl mock gaged at the idea. It sounded horrible!

“You asked,” Tauriel teased.

“What happened to them? There had to have been kids who could have stayed.”

“Hm.” She paused, wondering how much she should tell. “The grandparents built the house just after they got married. They wanted a homestead of their own and they loved the forest. People thought them crazy for building there because of the ghost stories, yes they had been around as long as people have lived near the Greenwood, but that didn’t stop them.

“They must have been pretty agreeable because they never got into any trouble with what’s in those woods. The couple had a long life and lots of children and grandchildren to fill that large house to the brim.

“But when they passed on and the grandkids grew up, everyone moved away to the city. The kids got too old to want to have to walk several miles to get groceries, and the grandkids wanted culture I guess.”

“Do you think there’s something in the Greenwood?” Tilda asked quietly.

Tauriel looked her in the eye. “Yes, I assure there is something supernatural in those trees.”

The girl could feel herself trembling. She knew there was something going on! Why else would there be so many stories, and for so long?

“I see a big white deer with pretty silver antlers behind the trees sometimes when I wake up at night.” Tilda hopped in her seat a little. “Da doesn’t believe me, but I know I saw it!”

“When you’re out in the woods, do you feel like you’re being watched?”

Tilda nodded. “Bain said he feels like he’s being watched all the time out there, too. I think that’s why he’s let me go with him when he wouldn’t before.”

“You’ll be fine once it gets cold and snow starts rolling in.” Tauriel snorted. “The season change will keep it at bay until spring. You’ll be fine.”

“Thanks, Miss Tauriel,” the girl sighed. She didn’t want know what it might do when spring came just yet.

\---

“Who wants to help me collect firewood?” Bard didn’t notice the look that passed between his children.

“Uh, I have to fix dinner, Da,” Sigrid answered quickly before leaving the living room.

“Bain? Tilda?”

Bain leaned in close to his sister where they were sitting on the couch. “I don’t want to leave Da out there alone with it,” he whispered.

Tilda nodded before facing her father. “We’ll go with you, Da.”

“Good.” He ushered them to the front hallway and grabbed their coats. “Bain and I will get the axe and hatchet if you’ll get the wagon, Tilda.”

Tilda trudged behind her father and brother for a good twenty minutes before Bard signaled for them to stop. There was a fallen tree that looked like it had been hit by lightning some time before and was at the point where it was dried out but not rotting badly. It would was perfect for chopping.

“I’ll start cutting the branches off. Bain, you need to cut them small enough to fit in Tilda’s wagon.” He balanced the axe in his hands. “This tree should provide us with enough wood to last a couple months at least. Assuming we can get the whole thing processed quickly.”

As Tilda picked up the sticks and put them in her wagon, she made sure to keep an eye on her surroundings. She was hoping to see the white deer so that she could prove to her dad it existed. The wagon was full before too long.  
“Looks like that’s all we’ll be getting today,” Bard stated, noticing the quality of the light through the trees. “The suns setting and we don’t want to be out here after dark.”

Disappointed, Tilda pulled her wagon with her, though it took some effort with it full of branches. Bain sidled up to her and offered to take the handle, but she refused. She didn’t need help.

“What the-!”

The kids nearly ran into their father when he stopped suddenly. They peered around him to see what held him up. A stag stood in their path, his fur completely white and the velvet on his antlers shined almost like silver. He stared at them a moment before bounding off and disappeared out of thin air.

“See, Da, I told you it was real!”

\---

“I didn’t white deer existed,” Sigrid mused as she set her home cooked meal on the table.

“They do, but…” Bard sighed rubbed his face. “They’re very rare and definitely not from this area. They also don’t have antlers like that.”

“Maybe it’s from the zoo?”

“It’s the ghost.”

“It’s a fairy!”

Bard sighed again. “Whatever is, we can’t really do anything about it. We can’t communicate with it, or even know where it is.”

“Tauriel said we should be safe during the winter.” Everyone stared expectantly at Tilda. “She didn’t say why!”  
“Lots of animals go into hibernation, maybe it does too?”

“But what about spring?”

“Why not ask Tauriel?”

“I know you like her, tilde, but she may not know any more than anyone else in town.”

“I bet she does!” Tilda slammed her fist on the table, earning herself a glare from her sister. “It doesn’t hurt to ask, Da. Please?”

“All right, darlin’. I hope you’re right.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just got a new computer so writing is more comfortable and I should be updating sooner.  
> Sorry for the short chapter. Honestly, the next one will probably be short, too.


End file.
